MacBlog – Macdonald Realty Blog

Darin Germyn, Macdonald Realty Surrey

April is off to a great start, or so we hope. With the Canucks getting knocked out of the playoffs last week, a positive light of anticipation is surrounding the team’s demise in the real estate market. Last year, going to round 4 game 7 really took a toll on our productive spring market, it was quiet; this year we look like we should get back to normal. If hockey is your thing there are a lot of playoffs left or maybe the warm weather tip-toeing in makes you smile, either way we know summer is around the corner. Living in a suburb of Vancouver, we all know how very much we deserve a sunny summer!

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Greater Vancouver housing market maintains a steady spring pace

Home sale and listing activity has maintained a consistent pace on the Multiple Listing Service® (MLS®) in Greater Vancouver in recent months, which has helped create balanced conditions for the region’s housing market.

The Real Estate Board of Greater Vancouver (REBGV) reports that residential property sales in Greater Vancouver reached 2,799 on the Multiple Listing Service® (MLS®) in April 2012. This represents a 13.2 per cent decline compared to the 3,225 sales recorded in April 2011 and a decline of 2.6 per cent compared to the 2,874 sales in March 2012.

April sales were the lowest total for the month in the region since 2001 and 16.9 per cent below the 10-year April sales average of 3,369.

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Future Housing and Decorating Trends

Colors

Due to the past several years of stock market crashes, job losses and general economic downturns it has changed people’s colour choices. The trend is toward safe traditional and comforting colors with pops of color in accessories. Neutrals are very popular in larger ticket items like cars, carpeting and major furniture pieces. Neutrals like greys and camel colors are popular with green and amethyst in our accent pieces.Some are even going with monochromatic color schemes.

Brown is losing its appeal and hues of cinnamon and mocha are becoming more appealing. Grey is once again making an appearance as the favourite as a main color due to its wide range of hues from light to very dark and people are throwing in touches of metallic and pearlescent accents in wallpapers and accessories. If you never changed that metallic wallpaper from a few decades ago it might just be coming back into fashion again. As the eco-consciousness continues, the new green will be showing up in everything from counter tops to fabric and accessories.

Great Color Combinations

Hot tangerine is the new vibrant accent piece to add to your neutral color scheme and black and white are also becoming popular. They are both a very clean and crisp look.

Colors to Avoid

Oranges unless they are corals or earthy deep orange and only use them as accents. No orange walls or carpets please.

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Squamish Real Estate Market Report – by Morgan Rice, Macdonald Realty Squamish

Darin Germyn, Macdonald Realty Surrey

Prices are falling! Hold Hold Hold! Don’t buy until next month! Rates are the lowest they have been since yesterday! Overseas Buyers increase market by 300%!

It is easy to get overwhelmed by all of the chatter over Real Estate in the news print, on TV and radio. The challenge with what you hear or see is that everyone has an opinion and there is many ways to share them nowadays. Through Twitter, Facebook, YouTube, and any media outlet looking to get their story in front of you, it can be a lot to process. So how do you make the best decisions for you?

Understanding what really pertains to you and your own individual situation is crucial to staying afloat in the bombardment of information that flows our way daily. Although it is important to stay atop the latest and greatest info, you should understand what applies to you or not. Rates dropping only matters after a certain point if you are already locked into another mortgage. Overseas buyers may be in the market for properties that have nothing to do with yours. Lowering real estate prices don’t matter unless you plan to move in the foreseeable future.

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